When you add fourth-year seniors (cornerback Daymeion Hughes and defensive tackle Brandon Mebane) and transfers (linebackers Desmond Bishop and Mickey Pimentel, quarterback Joe Ayoob and defensive ends Abu Ma'afala and Nu'u Tafisi) you've got a senior class that will be remembered in Bears history as a group that turned the program around.

The fifth-year seniors have gone 41-20 after Cal went 1-10 the year before their arrival, the Bears will play in their fourth consecutive bowl game for the first time in school history and no one in the senior class has ever lost to Stanford.

"It's kind of like Pappy's Boys," Levy said.

"Coming from a 1-10 program and bringing it back to where it's getting some national recognition is something we're really proud of," Storer said.

"We set the foundation for years to come," Bishop said.

"I feel like I'm part of Cal history," Mebane said.

"These guys have been instrumental in building the foundation at Cal," Tedford said.

They have invested so much in the program that their final home game takes on a special significance.

"To take the field for the last time will be a very emotional time for me and for my family," Storer said. "Walking into a stadium and looking around and appreciating what's become your home and what it took to get here will be something amazing."

It's a family affair for Pimentel, too. His mother, who works on Saturdays, will attend a game for the first time this season.

"I play better and with way more emotion when she's here," he said. "All of the seniors are going to leave it all on the field, trying to leave our mark on Cal's history."

The rest of the team is on the same page as the seniors.

"It's important for us to send the seniors off right," Tedford said.

"I've built great relationships with those guys, and this is the last time I'm going to be able to play with them, so I'm going to give my all for them," junior tailback Marshawn Lynch said.

"I'm thankful for everything they've done for the program and for our team this year," sophomore quarterback Nate Longshore said. "There are guys there who can't be replaced, because they've done so much for turning around the program."

Robertson remembers watching from the sidelines as a redshirt freshman in 2002, when Cal snapped its seven-game losing streak to Stanford.

"Our center, Ryan Jones, had tears in his eyes," Robertson said. "He was taking pictures with the axe, and he turned to me and said, 'Carry on the tradition.' "

Instead, this senior class has chosen to take that tradition to another level.